Cinesite has acquired a majority stake in animation & mocap studio Squeeze, located in Quebec City and Montreal. “Squeeze is a fantastic addition,” Cinesite Group CEO Antony Hunt said in a statement. “not only for its successful original IP Cracké and for its world-class animation portfolio, but also for its mocap capabilities and scale, and the opportunity to further enhance a dynamic Montreal based hub for the Cinesite group as a rapidly growing family entertainment powerhouse.”
Ranked on the 2020 Report on Business list of Canada’s Top Growing Companies, Squeeze is an animation studio located in Quebec City and Montreal with an international reputation. The studio has a creative team of more than 200 artists and technical experts. Co-founded in 2011 by Denis Doré and Patrick Beaulieu and quickly joined in 2014 by François Houde (current CFO), Squeeze works with the world’s elite in the entertainment industry including Disney, Marvel, Universal, Illumination, Supercell, Warner Bros and Ubisoft. The company has a mocap studio in Montreal and is also the creator of Cracké, an animated TV series broadcasted in over 210 territories and counting over 600 million views worldwide on digital platforms.
The will grant Cinesite the ability to further increase its animation content & service offerings for international markets while bringing mocap and Unreal capabilities into the group to service video game and film productions. Last year Squeeze was a recipient of an Epic MegaGrant from Epic Games. The MegaGrant has allowed Squeeze’s team of Unreal Engine specialists to focus on the development and combination of tools and systems that allows for the creation of uniquely styled and visually rich, animated footage.
Squeeze serves as the fifth studio to join the independently owned Cinesite group following Image Engine in 2015 Nitrogen Studios, renamed Cinesite Vancouver in 2017, German VFX studio Trixter in 2018 and most recently L’Atelier Animation last month. “I’m very pleased to see Squeeze join a leading group like Cinesite, we share a common vision of creation and commercialisation of original animation content and, most importantly, fundamental values such as excellence, humility and integrity," Denis Doré, who CO-founded Quebec and Montreal-based Squeeze in 2011 and currently serves as its CEO, said. "Besides helping us strengthen our leadership position with our entertainment elite partners, this alliance will benefit our talented artists so they can deliver bigger than life character performances."
Squeeze is a fantastic addition, not only for its successful original IP Cracké and for its world-class animation portfolio, but also for its mocap capabilities and scale, and the opportunity to further enhance a dynamic Montreal based hub for the Cinesite group as a rapidly growing family entertainment powerhouse.” Antony Hunt CEO, Cinesite Group
